"Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, October 2.\u00a0 Today\u2019s biggest developments and headlines include the climate crisis (always at the top of these news highlights because it\u2019s existential and should be a massive story every single day)\u2026plus lots more\u2026see below. Also, check out the latest from the DSR (David Rothkopf) Network<\/a>, and definitely BTW! - this time with Norm Ornstein and Timothy Snyder: \" There are reasons for optimism as we head into the 2026 midterms.

Polling is showing that people are fed up with Trump and his policies, courts are holding firm against the president, and some Republicans are beginning to distance themselves to a greater degree than we have previously seen. Yet winning in November will not mend the cracks in our democracy alone, and real challenges in our political system remain\"<\/strong>\r\n\r\n \ufeff<\/span><\/iframe>\r\n\r\n INTERNATIONAL NEWS\u00a0<\/strong>\r\n Electrification: Special Report<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t How Russia Uses Migrants as Weapons Against Europe<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Russia Is Planning Its Most Powerful Blow Yet to Try to Freeze Ukraine<\/a> (\"Ukraine showed European partners what it said were intercepted Russian plans to cut off major cities from power, heat and water this winter.\")<\/li>\r\n \t The Baltic States Prepare for War<\/a> (\"Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are readying themselves to fend off a Russian attack\u2014with the help of the United States, or without it.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Putin says Russia will use \u2018all weapons\u2019 in its arsenal if any of its territory is attacked<\/a> (So Putin's threatening use of nuclear weapons again. If we had a real president, they'd tell Putin that he'd better not even THINK about that!)<\/li>\r\n \t U.S. Sending Third Aircraft Carrier, Up to 10,000 More Troops, to Middle East<\/a> (\"The deployments come as Trump weighs resuming bombing Iran after the midterms\")<\/li>\r\n \t US sends third aircraft carrier to Middle East amid stalemate in Iran war<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t 'I was not going to let others die' - pilot of Flydubai flight describes cockpit attack by co-pilot<\/a> (\"Capt Smit Machchhar tells Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi he opened the cockpit door to let others in during the attack.\" Amazing!)<\/li>\r\n \t FlyDubai Pilot Who Tried to Crash Plane Identified as Omani<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t \u2018I couldn\u2019t let everybody else die,\u2019 says hero Flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t 400 French schools closed on Friday as protests escalate into \u2018urban violence\u2019 <\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Trump defies Democrats, diverts aid for Europe to Latin America instead<\/a> (This headline SHOULD SAY - but doesn't - \"Trump defies constitution, illegally and unconstitutionally diverts aid...\" Just a reminder that the \"mainstream\" media, in this case the Bezos Post, is badly failing us!)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n Fox News has spent almost two years claiming Trump\u2019s deportations are targeting \u201cthe worst of the worst.\u201d The administration just contradicted that narrative.<\/a> (Fox \"News\" is evil; nobody should watch it!)<\/li>\r\n \t Supreme Court Will Review Trump\u2019s Mandatory Immigrant Detention Policy<\/a> (\"DHS wants to hold millions of immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally, even those who have lived here for decades and haven\u2019t committed crimes.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Trump administration says it has no plans for ICE officers at polls.

Activists are preparing, anyway<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Behind the Curtain: AI's existential legal crisis<\/a> (\"No industry has ever taken so much copyrighted work and left behind so much proof.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Trump could target three Fed governors.

Removing them may be harder than it looks<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Households will pay more for energy because of Trump\u2019s policy changes, think tank says<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t The September jobs report will be released Friday. Here\u2019s what to expect<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Red States Just Asked the Supreme Court to Kill Abortion Shield Laws<\/a> (\"The long-expected constitutional showdown over states\u2019 rights and abortion rights is here.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Democrats regain ground on voter registration in key states after steep post-2024 drops<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Democrats rethink their mail-voting strategy as voters grow wary<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Competitive Authoritarianism in America<\/a> (\"The United States crossed the line into competitive authoritarianism during Donald Trump's second presidency: Elections remained real, but incumbents systematically abused state institutions to tilt the playing field against opponents.

The administration weaponized the Justice Department, the FBI, and other agencies against critics, universities, law firms, and the press, while national gerrymandering and coerced corporate money skewed competition. Judged by the eleven criteria the authors devised to score 35 regimes in their earlier research, the U.S. case is comparable to Hungary under Viktor Orb\u00e1n, if far softer than 1990s Russia or Serbia.

The new regime is unlikely to consolidate, however: The United States\u2019 vast countervailing power\u2014its wealth, private sector, and civil society\u2014dilutes authoritarian abuse and makes redemocratization by electoral turnover likely. Yet turnover would not mean democracy survived intact. Opposition parties do win unfair elections, and a restored U.S. democracy will remain unconsolidated until both major parties commit to its defense.\")<\/li>\r\n \t How Trump\u2019s obsession with \u2018rigged\u2019 voting machines spread across government<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Who\u2019s the Shadow President?<\/a> (\"Under the second Trump administration, the White House has often ignored Congress to carry out its agenda. Entire agencies, like USAID, have been gutted.

ICE has grown explosively. Behind it all is one man you may not have heard of: Russell Vought.\")<\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t With Republicans in trouble, Trump gives himself an A+ \u2018on everything\u2019<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Donald Trump\u2019s insatiable demand for Fox propaganda<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t What Is Trump Doing?<\/a> (\"Poll after poll shows that Trump\u2019s presidency is not going well. And he has only himself to blame.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Trump Has Just Given What Might Be His Most Unstable Interview Yet<\/a> (\"I\u2019m now convinced that the president lives on an entirely different plane of reality from you and me.\")<\/li>\r\n \t The Man Is Not Well<\/a> (\"We just got an unfettered view into the mind of the world\u2019s most powerful person.

It\u2019s alarming, to say the least.\")<\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t Hegseth puts the future of warfare in the hands of major Maga donors<\/a> (Just to emphasize, this is COMPLETELY INSANE!)<\/li>\r\n \t Pete Hegseth, Idea Guy<\/a> (\"His State of the Force address was a partisan disgrace\u2014with a few good ideas buried in it.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Pete Hegseth creates a Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs reporting directly to him<\/a> (WILDLY unconstitutional!)<\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t Pete Hegseth Just Declared Victory in the Wrong War<\/a> (\"The combative culture warrior in the Pentagon may soon be Congress\u2019s top target.\" Hegseth needs to be impeached IMMEDIATELY!)<\/li>\r\n \t Decades After Watergate, Justice Department Reviews Whether Nixon Got a Raw Deal<\/a> (\"Revisionist historian went to DOJ headquarters to present his case that former president, his associates weren\u2019t treated fairly\" At this point, DoJ is almost completely f'ed.)<\/li>\r\n \t Instead of Doing Anything Valuable, the DOJ Is Trying to Recast Richard Nixon as the Victim of Watergate<\/a> (\"Attorney general Todd Blanche will really do anything his puppeteers tell him, huh?\")<\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t Trump likely to pick Jay Clayton for AI czar, sources say<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Why a Popular Push to Ban Congressional Stock Trading Crashed and Burned<\/a> (\"But is it only mostly dead?\")<\/li>\r\n \t Congress Leaves With a Whimper, as the G.O.P.

Braces for Midterm Pain<\/a> (\"Republicans lined up a series of doomed votes in their final hours, hoping to portray Democrats as obstructionists. But some conceded that their party was more likely to be punished.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Dems are running against the One Big Beautiful Bill. What can they do if they win?<\/a> (Cool, but why keep calling this monstrosity by its Orwellian, Turmpian name?)<\/li>\r\n \t TSA officers must now stand up on the job<\/a> (\"The agency is removing chairs from document-checking stations.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Smith\u2019s game-day texts reviewed by Schmitt never referenced basketball team names<\/a> (Schmitt is absolute SCUM!)<\/li>\r\n \t Trump illegally fired Seattle\u2019s U.S. attorney, judge rules<\/a> (\"The ruling is the latest in a string of decisions finding that the administration bent federal law to keep loyalists in key prosecutorial posts.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Long After Divisive Primary, El-Sayed Is Still Working to Unite Michigan Democrats<\/a> (\"The progressive Senate candidate is offering olive branches to Jewish voters and campaigning with Kamala Harris to attract Black voters.

Polling shows it may be working.\")<\/li>\r\n \t 3 Billionaires Have Largely Funded Republican Nominee for Wisconsin Governor<\/a> (\"Under its current rules, Wisconsin has not had a race in which a small number of donors have made up such a large share of a campaign\u2019s funding.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Fox News Poll: It\u2019s a Lone Star Senate showdown between Talarico and Paxton<\/a> (Talarico leads by 2 in this poll.)<\/li>\r\n \t Fox News Poll: Turek, Hinson in close Iowa Senate race<\/a> (\"A Fox News statewide survey of Iowa likely voters finds Democrat Josh Turek with a two-point edge over Republican Ashley Hinson, 49% to 47%, well within the margin of error. Amonged voters, Turek is ahead by 4 points, 50% to 46%\")<\/li>\r\n \t Red States Are Trending Blue.

Is Mississippi Really on the Table?<\/a> (\"Democrats hope a tanking president, a sour economy and a strong candidate will turn the GOP bastion into the next Georgia.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Vance\u2019s red-state swing hits Florida as polls tighten in Sunshine State<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t David Ellison Asks CNN CEO to Stay After Paramount-Warner Deal Closes<\/a> (\"Bari Weiss isn\u2019t expected to have a role involving CNN at close, people familiar with Ellison\u2019s thinking said\")<\/li>\r\n \t \u2018I am haunted\u2019: Tennessee grapples with questions after another botched execution <\/a> (Even if you support the death penalty, c'mon, even you have got to admit this is barbaric and completely f'ed up!)<\/li>\r\n \t How the Supreme Court Caused a Botched Execution in Tennessee<\/a> (\"There is a straight line between the high court\u2019s grisly machinations and the horrors that befell Christa Pike in the execution chamber.\" The six far-right Supreme Court justices are truly disgusting human beings.)<\/li>\r\n \t Tennessee suspends executions as Christa Pike\u2019s lawyer says failed lethal injection leaves her in critical condition<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Christa Pike in critical condition after surviving two lethal injections, lawyer says<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t A Terrible Way to Die, a Terrifying Way to Survive<\/a> (\"America\u2019s experiment with lethal injection has failed.\")<\/li>\r\n \t A 'dark cloud' and 'dismal' mood: How it feels on Cornell campus right now<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t How Explosive Rape Allegations Have Left Cornell\u2019s Campus Reeling<\/a> (\"On the hilly Ivy League campus, emotions are running high and students are demanding answers from the university\u2019s administration\")<\/li>\r\n \t Special prosecutor takes over Cornell alleged gang rape investigation as national outrage grows<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t Cornell assault case shows #MeToo didn\u2019t go far enough<\/a> (\"The backlash against the woman suing Chi Phi fraternity members is turning into a witch hunt\")<\/li>\r\n \t Hochul Names Letitia James as Special Prosecutor in Cornell Case<\/a> (\"Gov.

Kathy Hochul appointed the state attorney general to investigate a former Cornell University student\u2019s allegation of rape. The woman has sued seven men in connection with the alleged assault.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Cornell Police Report Omitted Student's Claim She Was Raped <\/a> (Seems kinda relevant, no???)<\/li>\r\n \t How a Cornell Student Went From Shame to Action<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t MLB drops proposal to host a baseball game at Grand Teton National Park <\/a><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n VIRGINIA NEWS\u00a0<\/strong>\r\n Video: Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA08), Arlington County Board Member JD Spain Rip Trump\u2019s \u201cDamn Arch\u201d as \u201cGreat Sacrilege,\u201d \u201cIllegal,\u201d \u201cAtrocity,\u201d \u201cDisgrace\u201d<\/a> (Trump's \"about to lose the midterms, and the new majority in Congress WILL stop him!\")<\/li>\r\n \t Video: Asked if AI Could Be a \u201cMarket Bubble,\u201d Sen. Mark Warner Urges \u201cCaution,\u201d Says If There\u2019s an AI \u201cIncident,\u201d \u201cthis could all blow up and that would be at least short-term devastating to the stock market\u201d<\/a> (Sen. Warner: \"I wouldn't put all my retirement savings in investing in AI\")<\/li>\r\n \t Early voting numbers show a shift toward Democrats.

If those hold, two House seats in Virginia could flip, and a third could be close.<\/a> (\"The past week has seen forecasters shift their ratings in three Virginia districts, upgrading Democratic chances in each. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has put money into the state to defend Republican seats.

Here\u2019s the math driving those moves.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Shannon Taylor is surging in the polls and in fundraising<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t New WaPo\/Schar Poll Has Shannon Taylor (D) Up 50%-46% Over Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA01); Rep. John McGuire (R-VA05) Up 51%-45% Over Tom Perriello (D)<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Election 2026: Wittman, Taylor detail their views on Iran, tariffs, Social Security and ICE<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Shannon Taylor targets Rob Wittman\u2019s stock trading in heated US House race<\/a> (\"Taylor\u2019s criticism that Wittman got wealthier while in Congress is supported when comparing the financial disclosure he filed in 2008 with the one he filed most recently.\")<\/li>\r\n \t VERIFY: Rep. Jen Kiggans' support of the Second Amendment and gun laws<\/a> (\"We can verify: yes, Kiggans has opposed stricter gun laws.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Tim Miller at The Bulwark thinks Beth Macy can pull the upset in the Sixth<\/a> (\"Virginia Dem insiders tell me VA-06 is the sneaky one to watch.

The Shenandoah Valley\u2013centered district has some college towns and artsy progressive pockets and is generally less rural than its redder southwestern neighbor (the 9th). Virginia was hit hard by DOGE firings that affected the whole Commonwealth\u2019s economy, not just the D.C. suburbs.

Keep your eye on this one as an indicator of how big the blue wave actually is.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Pope & Schapiro: another data center wrinkle and a new outlook on Virginia midterm races<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Video: VA Gov. Abigail Spanberger Rolls Out \u201cClean-First, Least-Cost Approach\u201d Virginia Energy Plan<\/a> (There's a lot of good in here, but it could definitely more aggressive in a variety of ways)<\/li>\r\n \t Spanberger announces long term energy plan for the Commonwealth<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Spanberger unveils energy plan to meet growing Virginia demand<\/a> (\"The plan models several hypothetical scenarios and argues that emphasizing renewable energy and having data centers reduce their power demand during peak times will lead to the lowest total cost of energy when the impacts on health and the environment are included.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Spanberger releases Energy Plan: Big Energy no longer writing its own rules<\/a> (\"The key feature of the Spanberger Energy Plan is its use of energy-system modeling and analysis.

The modeling shows Virginia has multiple pathways to a net-zero power system by 2050 without having to rely on a single fuel or energy technology \u2013 which is to say, it\u2019s not Youngkin\u2019s drill, baby, drill.\")<\/li>\r\n \t Virginia must lead again on menhaden conservation<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t FOIA Friday: Virginia faces scrutiny over public records transparency<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Local food aid program loses federal funding, but maintains state support<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Virginia Beach ballot for City Council is chock-full of return candidates<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Prince William Co. cuts ribbon on new Occoquan Elementary School, replacing nearly century-old building<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Another plan is in the works for Roanoke\u2019s most hotly debated piece of undeveloped land. Will this one be the catalyst for a decision?<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t Portsmouth candidates talk economic development, housing and public safety<\/a><\/li>\r\n \t DC-area forecast: Hot and humid today before a cooler, wetter weekend<\/a><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>"